Dreaming of death
by takethis2urgrave
Summary: An eerie dream leads to a chance encounter with a certain shape-shifting protector, or is it fate. Will Peyton realize the significance of her dream before it's too late? Set way after Breaking Dawn.
1. Prologue

"Aaarrgh!" I sit bolt upright, the sheet falling away, drenched in sweat. My heart feels as if it's about to burst through my ribs and take flight. It takes a good few minutes for the dream to fade and my bedroom to reassemble its self. The dark dream night fades away, the screams slowly silenced. I lie back on the pillow and cover my eyes with my arm. I don't need to look at the clock to know the time. The blinking red digits are always the same. 3:29 am. For the last year, my sleep has been disrupted at the same time every night, the nightmare always the same. The screams ripping through the dark, the sounds of battle are deafening. I know someone is dying, I always know. I'm just not sure who that someone is, nor if it's just a dream or if it's more prophetic. And that's what scares me so much. Am I seeing the future? Do I have the ability to stop this person's death? But if that's true, how am I meant to go about it? I don't even know where the dream is happening. I leap up, too wound up to sleep again tonight. As I pass the study I see an eerie bluish light seeping under the door. I push the door open and step inside. The light spills from the laptop screen, reflecting in the window. I was sure I had turned it off before I had gone to bed. I walk around the desk and reach for the mouse. As soon as I look at the screen my body turns cold. The laptop is turned off. The screen is black and all the little flashing lights are silent. Then, as I stand there staring, something flashes onto the screen. A Google search. Two words are written in the search box. I do not recognize the words, don't know what they mean. But there they are none the less. I click on the search button and wait to see what appears. I read the first entry:

**La Push**, Washington - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

**La Push** is a small unincorporated community in Clallam County, Washington, United States. It is home to the Quileute tribe and is located along the Quileute...

Geography - History - Tourism - References

_.org/wiki/__**La**_____**Push**__,_Washington_ - Cached - Similar

What the hell is going on? Before I can read anything else, the screen goes blank. I back away from the desk, quickly fleeing from the room and shutting the door roughly behind me. Okay, so, logical explanation; I'm losing my mind. Probably that should bother me more, but I'd rather that than believe my laptop just turned itself on and opened up a search for a place I've never heard of. So, crazy. I had better book myself into the nut house tomorrow.

I leave the study and wander through the house, idly looking around though not really seeing anything. I end up in the kitchen and pull a glass from the cupboard. I pour a healthy measure of tequila into the glass and gulp it down in one go. Three more glasses later and I pour myself back into bed.

A little over a week later, the same thing happened with the computer. It scared me so much I hid the laptop under a stack of towels in the linen cupboard. It's been in there for over a fortnight. But when I woke up from the recurring nightmare this morning, the door was open with the laptop sitting on the towels. The La Push search was on the screen, glowing brightly and sending a chill skittering down my spine.

I bit the bullet and opened the search, reading up on the little town of La Push. And I mean heavy emphasis on the little; La Push has a measly population of 371 people.

After that, I dreamt of La Push every night, always before the other dream. The one I've had every night for three years. I still didn't entirely understand either dream. Was I meant to go to La Push? Is that where the battle is to take place? I keep going round in circles, only one thing seems to make sense; I have to go there.


	2. Only a vampire can

Chapter 1- Only a vampire can.

* * *

"Only a vampire can love you forever," he looks up at me, then back at my shirt. "Your shirts wrong," he states sullenly. He's laying flat on his back, arms bent and hands cradling his head. He's wearing nothing but a pair of worn black cut-off sweats. They ride low on his hips, making it quite clear he's going commando.

"Ah, okay. Good to know," I give him a small smile, trying not to let him see I think he's insane. I turn away and continue my solitary stroll down the beach.

"Hey! Didn't you wanna know what else can love you forever?" he jogs up behind me.

I give him a sideways glance, quickly assessing the danger, "Look I don't really have time for whatever this is, so I'm just gonna walk away now, 'Kay." I pick up my pace, trying to put more distance between us.

"Yeah, sure. Guess I'll see you round."

If I didn't know any better I'd swear he sounded a little wounded. He stops walking and just stands there watching me; I can feel his eyes on my back. I quickly make my way to the forest fringe and follow the path towards the car park.

"Hey, hold on a sec. Can I just ask you one question?"

I hear him running towards me.

"No!" I yell and step off the path into the forest, making a run for it.

* * *

I keep running straight through the forest and into a clearing, coming to a halt only when I face plant over someone's legs. Groaning, I sit up and face the trip-artist, "Sorry, I didn't see you. Are you okay?" As I say this, I take in possibly the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. She's like a fallen angel, the only thing marring her beauty are three deep scars running from her hair line to beneath the neck of her t-shirt.

"Ow. Kinda hurt, but its okay. Are you alright? You hit the ground pretty hard," she sounds really concerned.

"Ah, yeah I think so. Nothing feels broken at any rate. Are you sure you're alright?" I get up and offer her a hand. "I'm Peyton by the way. And I don't normally dive bomb people. Sorry, again."

"It's okay. No harm, no foul. I'm Emily, nice to meet you," she extends her hand for me to shake. "Wanna come in for a drink or something? You seem a little anxious."

And here I thought I was doing a good job of hiding my fear. Apparently not. I take a sec to calm down before answering her. She just smiles and gives me my moment.

"A drink would be good. Thanks. I'm pretty sure some guy was trying to stalk me or something. I was trying to get away from him when I kissed the ground. Not that you need to worry about that. I'm pretty sure I managed to get away from him," I follow her into the house as I fill her in on the reason for my mental state.

After making sure I'm okay and asking if I want to call the police (which I decline), she gets us both a deliciously icy glass of lemonade and a slice of chocolate mud cake. I follow her to the lounge and take a seat on the couch.

"Your house is really lovely, Emily," I tell her as I look around. The place has a really homey, comfortable feel about it. It feels lived in and happy, if a house can feel happy. Emily blushes at the compliment and gives me a small smile.

"So you're not from around here are you?" she asks.

"No, I'm not. Is it that obvious?"

"Not obvious. It's just that La Push is a really small town and I pretty much recognise everyone by sight. And I've never seen you before. So where are you from? And what's brought you to La Push?"

"I'm from Fort Worth originally, but I've been living in Portland the last year. I'm kinda here for a holiday, not sure how long for, though. Speaking of which, do you know of anywhere I can check in? I got to town late last night and slept in the car. I'd rather something a little more comfortable," I really don't want to spend a second night in the car and I figure a local will have a good recommendation.

"Well actually, my husband and I run a sort of B'n'B slash bed sit kind of thing. We often take longer term tenants because there's not a lot of demand for beds for just a night or two around here. But if you'd like we have a spare cabin at the moment. It's not fancy, but we think it's nice."

"Really? That would be fantastic. Where abouts is it?" I'm hoping she might offer me a ride, seeing as how I left my car back at the beach. She laughs and gets up, heading towards the front door. As we step outside, I realise my mistake. There are two little cabins set on either side of the house, about twenty metres separating the three buildings. The driveway runs between the cabins and ends in a turning circle in front of the main house. The cabin on the left is a little bigger than the one on the right of the drive. Both are painted like the main house, simple cream with forest green trim.

"We've got a couple of long termers in number one," she informs me, pointing to left cabin, "but two is completely empty. It has two rooms, each with its own ensuite. The kitchen, dining and laundry are communal. Of course, unless we get someone else in, you won't have to worry about that. Its $50 a night, or $300 a week and that includes linen. We also offer meals."

As she gives me the sales pitch, I follow her into cabin two. The front door opens onto a fairly large lounge, dining, kitchen. It's all open plan and very inviting. The decor consists of a lot of wood, with clean lines and colours throughout. She points out the two bedrooms, to the side of the main room. The laundry is off the kitchen. It's not very big, but they've certainly made the most of the space. In each bedroom is a big wooden four poster bed with thick quilts. The beds look very tempting to someone who's slept in her car.

"I'll take it. Can I book in for a week and see how we go?" I decide quickly. Even if I can't figure out why I'm here, the place is so relaxing I'm sure to get a heap of work done.

"Okay, cool. Well if you come back to the house, I'll get you all signed in and we can get your luggage."

"Sounds good to me. Though I'm gonna need directions back to the first beach car park? That's where my car is and I'm not sure I can find my way back through the trees," not to mention I don't want to risk running into the stalker in the woods.

"Well I can give you a ride if you'd like. I need to go to Forks to get some groceries soon anyway."

So after Emily gets me all checked in, we head back towards my car. It turns out to be quite close, but I don't think I would have found my way back easily. We find my car exactly where I left it and Emily leaves me with the keys to the cabin and a map of the area. Heading back, I let myself in and stick my bags in the bedroom closest to the kitchen and backdoor. After taking a shower, I curl up on the couch with my laptop and proceed to do some work.

A tap on the door breaks me out of my work trance. Getting up to answer it, I find Emily standing on the porch. I also notice the fact that it is very dark out. Checking my watch, I see that it's after 7 pm. I've been working non-stop for the last five hours. I smile at Emily and step back so she can come in.

"Hey, how are you settling in?" she asks as she steps past me.

"Oh, yeah, good. This place is so relaxing; I've managed to get through at least four days work since I got back this afternoon. I was able to just zone everything else out," I managed to get through way more than I would have had I been at home.

"Well that's good. Sorry to break your concentration."

"That's okay. It probably wouldn't have lasted much longer anyway. I'm starting to get pretty hungry now. Speaking of which, is there any good places to get dinner around here or do I have to go back to Forks?" my tummy growls loudly as if to prove my point.

"That's actually why I was coming over here. I'm just about to serve dinner over at the house. Would you like to join us? Or I can bring some over to you. We're having roast lamb and vegetables with Yorkshire puddings, and chocolate cheesecake for dessert," she informs me and my mouth starts to water just thinking about it.

"You had me at dinner. I would love to join you. Does this mean I get to meet your husband as well?"

"Yes, Sam has just gotten home from work. You'll be able to meet our kids also," she waits while I pull on a pair of sneakers and grab a coat. After locking the door, we head across the lawn to the house.

"I didn't even think you had kids. You don't look nearly old enough. How old are they?"

She laughs and blushes, though I can barely detect the red showing through her gorgeous russet skin.

"Thank you for saying so, but I am 28. Levi and Ember will be five in September. They're fraternal twins," she says, pride oozing from her voice.

We arrive at the house and I can hear children giggling and footsteps as Emily opens the door to let us in. Entering the dining room my eyes instantly take in the colossal, seven foot tall, tanned gods chasing two children round the table. The two men look up as we walk in, one of them smiling lovingly at Emily before turning to me, "hello. I'm Sam, Emily's husband. Welcome to La Push. This is Levi," indicating the giggly little boy trying to escape Sam's hold, "and this is my daughter Ember and my brother Embry," he points out the other child and the complete hottie holding on to her.

"Hello. I'm Peyton. It's nice to meet you all. And thank you for having me in your home."

"You're very welcome, Peyton. Now why don't we all take a seat? I don't know about you lot, but I'm starving," Sam gives me a huge smile before plonking Levi into a seat and helping Emily set the food on the table.

"Peyin, sit nets to me," Ember demands. I do as I she asks, and Embry sits on her other side.

He sticks his bottom lip out, "don't you love me anymore Emmy?"

Ember gives him a sweet smile, "course I do silly Emby. But Peyin pwetty. She my beses fwend," she grabs my hand and holds it firmly in her own.

"Aw, well as long as you still love me, I suppose that's okay." Then he leans down and whispers, so low I can only just hear, into Embers ear, "and she is very pretty."

Dinner was absolutely delicious and I ate a large plate full, starving after only eating the piece of cake Emily gave me at midday. I don't normally eat so much and I felt a little piggy. That is, until I saw the amount Sam and Embry ate. Then I felt much better.

I helped Emily clear away the dinner dishes while Sam put the children to bed. When I got up to help, Emily and Sam both protested but I felt bad that Emily should have to do the dishes by herself. She washed while I dried and she roped Embry into putting them away.

"So when do we get pudding?" Embry asks as he pours himself and Sam a whisky.

Emily hands me a glass of sweet white wine before rolling her eyes at Embry, "How you can still be hungry after the amount you just ate is beyond me. Besides, I didn't think cheesecake went with whisky."

"Whisky goes with everything, Em. Didn't you know that? And anyway, you should know me well enough by now to remember I never pass up food. Especially not yours," his smile is rather cheeky as he says this and Sam punches him playfully in the arm.

"If I didn't know better, Call, I'd swear you were hitting on my wife."

"I'd never hit on your wife, dude. Well not while you're around anyway," Embry laughs and ducks out of the way before Sam can punch him again.

"Are they always like this?" I ask Emily as we bring the cheesecake into the lounge. After putting everything on the coffee table, I sit on the couch next to her.

"Always this immature?" she asks and I nod. "Then yes, they are. It's like having four children instead of two."

"Hey," Sam says, sounding wounded, "I resent that."

"No you don't man, you know it's true," Embry laughs at him as he flops down next to me. He picks up two slices of cheesecake and hands me one with a fork.

"Mmm. As delicious as this looks, I'm not sure I have room for another bite," I rub my distended belly.

"You have to try it anyway," he tells me. "Emily's cheesecake is the best you will ever taste and this may be your only chance. She usually only makes it for special occasions."

He's devoured half his piece and is already eyeing mine up. Picking up the fork, I scoop up a small portion and bring it to my mouth. It's literally like heaven, the flavours bursting on my tongue. After eating a good third of it, I hand the rest to Embry.

"Can I take you home with me when I leave? That was amazing," I tell Emily honestly. I don't think I've ever eaten anything that good.

"Maybe not. Somehow, I don't think Sam would let you. You'll just have to come back to visit. Or you could always move here," as she finishes saying this, I hear someone on foot approaching the house.

"Are you guys expecting someone else, because you have a visitor?"

Emily throws me a strange look, "I don't hear anything."

As she answers me, I hear someone open up the backdoor and walk down the hall.

"It's just Colin," Embry tells me. Then, "Hey, Colin. We're in the lounge bro."

A familiar voice answers him, "I know dick; I can smell you from here. Sam, I need to talk to you about my shift tomorrow."

The man named Colin enters the room and slouches in to one of the spare chairs. He looks extremely tired and it takes me a minute to figure out why his voice and appearance look so familiar. It's the creepy stalker from the beach. My breath hitches in my throat at my epiphany and Colin looks up at me. His eyes go wide for a minute before his face breaks into a smile.

"Well hello there beautiful. I see you didn't get too far," he leans forward in his seat as he talks. I lean back and away from him, which pushes me closer into Embry's side. Everyone is looking confusedly between me and Colin.

"Colin, how do you know Peyton?" Emily asks him.

"Peyton is it? What a lovely name. Peyton and I met this morning at the beach," he winks at me.

"You know this guy?" I ask Emily incredulously. "He's the creep who tried stalking me this morning." Just thinking about it again makes my skin crawl and I lean further into Embry's side.

"What do you mean creep? And I was not stalking you. I was simply being nice. If you hadn't taken off like a frightened little rabbit, I was going to ask you out for dinner," he pretends to take offence at the insult, but he's soon back to hitting on me. "How was I to know you already had plans," he glares at Embry, who laughs.

I hit Embry as hard as I can, "It is not funny." Then I turn my glare at Colin, "And not that it's any of your business, but I did not have plans with Embry. I am a guest of Emily and Sam's. Not that I would have gone anywhere with you."

Everyone cracks up laughing at the mistake. After a minute, I even join them. Now that I know he wasn't trying to murder me, it's actually quite funny. When the laughter's died down I turn to Colin, smile sweetly and hold out my hand which he takes in his very large one, "Hello, I'm Peyton, nice to meet you."

"Hello, Peyton. I'm Colin. It's good to finally meet you, too."

"Oh, and Colin? Just for future reference. The next time you want to talk to a girl, don't chase her. It's not exactly conducive to her agreeing to go on a date with you. You may find her calling the police instead."

Soon after, I say my goodnights and head back to my cabin, leaving the others chatting in the lounge.

When I fall asleep that night, my recurring dream has changed slightly. I am able to recognise where the fight is taking place. It's the forest surrounding La Push.


	3. Old school and highschool

My self allocated week in La Push is almost at an end. I will have been here a week tomorrow and still I haven't figured out my dream or why it sent me here. Although, since I've been here, it has changed somewhat. The dream setting is most definitely the forest around here. And last night I was able to see the two warring sides clearly. Though I'm not sure what that says about my mental state, as they were a large pack of horse-sized wolves ripping apart the most stunningly beautiful people I have ever seen. I even thought about discussing the dream with Emily, though I quickly dismissed the idea lest she have me committed.

Surprisingly, my relationship with Emily has progressed rapidly. It's almost as if we've known each other for years, rather than days. And here, at the end of my stay, I find myself not wanting to leave. We have fast become quite good friends.

So as I sit in the lounge of the cabin, I am not very surprised when Emily and the kids appear at the door. I quickly put my laptop on the coffee table as Levi and Ember rush in and throw themselves into my lap.

"Well, good morning to you, too. And did you all sleep well?" I ask as I tickle the twins.

Emily sits next to us, a large smile on her lips, "I would have slept much better if these two hadn't been up at 6 am, wanting to come see they're new favourite person." She laughs as the twins throw their arms round my neck and plant wet kisses on each cheek.

"Oh, naughty. Did you wake Mummy up?" I ask the twins. They shake their heads, both trying to look innocent. "You should have brought them over Em. I've been up since five, working."

"That's okay. Besides, we got heaps of baking done for tonight didn't we kids," she says, to which they both nod their heads enthusiastically. "Which is precisely why we've come over; the kids have something to ask you."

Ember pipes up, "Yeah Peyin. Jawed and Kimmy are hawing a engagmin pardy dis niwt. You wanna come wif us? Pwease?" she gives me her best puppy dog look, sticking out her bottom lip.

I had met Kim and Jared a few days prior, having had dinner with them over at the main house.

"Hmmm, let me think. Is it okay with Jared and Kim if I come?" I ask Emily, to which she nods. "Well, in that case, I'd love to come to the party with you," I tell an eager Ember and Levi.

Which is precisely how I came to find myself sitting on the beach with the twins, a roaring bonfire casting its soft glow and heat over us.

When we arrived, Emily and Sam had introduced me around. Though I had already met a few of the people in the days since my arrival, including Jared and Kim, Paul and Rachel, Quil, Embry and the stalker, also known as Colin. The rest of the guests consisted of Colin's brother, Brady, Paul's brother Heath and girlfriend Emerald, Seth, Jayson and his girlfriend Drew, Jackson, Flea, and brothers Navah and Tripp. There are a few others milling around too, but I got distracted by all of the men, who are absolutely massive and muscled and gorgeous.

After we've all eaten our fill, some taking a lot more filling than others, everyone relaxes around the bonfire chatting and catching up.

"Where oh where has my little dog gone? Oh where, oh where can he be? His hair is short and his tail is long. Oh where, oh where is he?" I sing softly to Ember and Levi as we sit leaning against the warm drift wood log, one snuggled in to me on each side. I've cycled through all the nursery rhymes I can remember from my own childhood so I start on songs from my teens, "Today is a winding road. It's taking me to places that I didn't want to go. Whoa-oh. Today in the blink of an eye I'm holding on to something and I do not know why I try. I tried to read between the lines, I tried to look in your eyes. I want a simple explanation for what I'm feeling inside."

After a few lines I notice the twins drifting off as a new voice joins in. I look up in surprise to see Rachel singing along. Then Embry and Quil join in.

After managing to remember pretty much all the words, a few of the others crack up laughing.

"Jeez. That song is old school. I can't believe I still remember the words. We used to listen to that song so much back in the day," Rachel reminisces, a smile plastered on her lips.

"You mean you used to play it at top volume and force the rest of us to listen to it. She practically held us down till we learnt the words and made Jake learn to play it on the guitar so she could hold little sing alongs," Rachel flushes in embarrassment when Embry outs her.

"Baby," Pauls says sweetly to Rachel, "you were kind of a dork."

Rachel smacks him in the chest before letting out a high pitched giggle as Paul tickles her. Then he silences her by capturing her mouth with a sweet, loving kiss. I look away as a weird feeling, as if I'm intruding on something private, permeates my thoughts.

"So Peyton, did you make your brother and his mates learn the song too. Or were you more normal than Rach?" Embry asks when Paul and Rachel stop sucking face.

"Ha, ha. Ah, no. I don't have a brother. I'm an only child actually. Though if I had, I probably would have done the same thing," I answer, trying to make Rachel feel better, though Paul seems to have done a pretty good job of that.

"Thanks Peyton," Rachel says, smiling warmly at me.

Emily and Sam come over to me then and gently pick up the twins.

"I think you've got a new fan club with these two," Sam says, nodding at the twins. "Thanks for getting them to sleep. It's not usually so painless after one of these bonfires."

"I'm happy I could be of service," I joke. "But truthfully, they're very lovely kids."

Sam and Emily leave, saying their goodnights and taking the twins home to bed. Another couple with a little girl of about ten leave not long after the Uley's. Then the party seems to really get started. A few of the guys bring out their guitars and start playing while some serious drinking gets under way. After a while some of the couples get up to dance.

As I'm sitting in the sand enjoying an ice cold beer, Quil and Embry come over.

"So, got any more high school hits to sing for us?" Quil asks.

I laugh, "I might have a few. How about some Lady Antebellum? Or Nickelback? Actually, I know the perfect high school song," I laugh as I take Embry's guitar and pull myself into a sitting position on a log. The other guy playing guitar stops and looks over to me.

I clear my throat as I tune the guitar and strum a few random cords to get a feel for the guitar.

"Okay, here goes. 'Oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, hey. Oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, oh-oh oh oh, hey. Four years you think for sure that's all you've got to endure, all the total dicks, all the stuck up chicks. So superficial, so immature. Then when you graduate you take a look around and you say hey wait. This is the same as where I just came from. I thought it was over. Oh, that's just great. The whole damn world is just as obsessed with who's the best dressed and who's having sex who's got the money who gets the honeys who's kind of cute and who's just a mess. And you still don't have the right look and you don't have the right friends. Nothing changes but the faces the names and the trends. High school never ends." I sing the whole song and get a little standing ovation at the end. Then I follow on with Lady Antebellum's 'Lookin for a good time' and Nickelback's 'This afternoon'. After which I give the guitar to one of the others and Embry asks me to dance.

As we dance, Embry compliments me on my impromptu performance. He's a pretty good dancer and when Colin starts playing a slow song Embry pulls me in close and wraps his arms round my waist. With my breasts crushed to his chest my arms snake up round his neck almost of their own accord. The heat coming off him is intense, and keeps the chill at bay as we sway to the song.

The liquor is flowing freely, though the only ones who seemed to be getting any drunker were the females. I stumble over and flop down on a blanket next to Kim, Rachel, Drew and Emerald.

"Hey. What are y'all talking about?" I ask cheerily.

"Hey, it's Peyton right. Emerald," she points to herself.

"Yeah, I remember. Emily pointed you and Drew out when we got here." So are you all from La Push?" I ask. It's one of the main things I've noticed tonight, everyone seems really close, like they've grown up together.

"Yip. All rez born and bred, although Emerald and I are currently living away at college. But we always come home for holidays, special occasions and the odd weekend," Drew answers me.

We discuss their studies before moving on to Kim and Jared's wedding plans. They were getting married in three months on the beach.

"So have you been together long?" I ask Kim.

She passes me another beer as she answers, "yeah. We've been together for about nine years actually. If it were up to Jared we would have got married at 16, but I wanted to get my degree and settle down first." I already knew Kim had studied to be a teacher and had just started working at the reservation school. Rachel, who also held a degree, volunteered as a counsellor at the school and she and Paul also ran the local store after inheriting it from Paul's mum.

We girls end up playing cards and chatting while the guys mess around with a football. Then, like the overgrown children they still are, a few of the younger guys decided it would be an awesome idea to play spotlight. So, being semi drunk, we all agreed. Before we started, they decided on a boundary line as well. As we were running to hide, Colin, who was it first, laughs like he knows a really good secret. And after getting found first, I think it was because he was cheating. Normally I'm quite good at hiding. Embry takes pity on me after twenty minutes of me not finding anyone. He jumps down from a tree a few feet to my left, almost scaring the crap out of me. He leans down and whispers very low in my ear, "Check under the black jeep in the car park." He walks with me as I head in that direction. I drop down and shine the torch under the jeep and see Brady blinking at the glare. "Yay, I found someone. You're it dude. You can have the torch and I'll go get a beer," I tell him as I put the torch down by his head. Embry follows me as I head back to the bonfire to find the afore mentioned beer.

"Are you done or are you gonna play again?" Embry asks me as people start wandering back after being found.

"Hmm, I dunno. Everyone seems exceptionally good at hiding," I answer after taking a long pull on my beer.

"Come on. I'll help you. You can hide with me," he sends me a cheeky smile and grabs my hand, pulling me up as Heath and Emerald start counting.

We head along the sand towards the cliffs at the far end. At a little path he leads me up. I feel the alcohol wearing off with the fresh air and exercise. We walk almost to the top of the cliff before he pulls me into a crevice. It's really just a small indent in the rock face but the ground is covered in soft pine needles. I plant my arse and lean back against the rock, patting the ground next to me. Embry takes the hint and lowers himself to the ground. His considerable size all but blocks my view so I focus on him instead.

"So are we still inside the boundary line, or are we officially cheating?" I ask as I lay my head against his shoulder.

"Well technically we're only about 3 metres outside the line, but were at least 15 metres above it. The others all cheat anyway so it doesn't really matter. So, how do you like your stay so far?"

"I don't wanna leave. It's so relaxing here. And I know this probably sounds weird, but I feel a connection here. Like this is where I'm meant to be. Strange, huh?"

"It doesn't sound weird at all. How long are you gonna stay for?"

"To start with, only a week. But the weeks up tomorrow so I think I might extend it a few more days. But I will have to go soon for work."

"True. What is it you do anyway?"

"I work in publishing," I say, not entirely lying.

He asks me more questions and then answers some of my own. Before I realise it, Embry informs me that the others are about to head home due to it being almost 2 am.

"Wow. I hadn't realised it had gotten so late. You're just so easy to talk to," I tell Embry as he takes my hand to help steady me while we head back down the cliff path. We get back in time to help pack the last few things into Kim's car. I say night to everybody and start toward the road. I stop upon hearing someone call out. Turning around I see Embry coming towards me.

"Wait up. You shouldn't be walking by yourself so late at night. I'll walk with you," he offers like a gentleman.

"Thanks but you don't have to. Is it even in the right direction for you to get home?"

"Yep. We pass right by my place so it's no big deal. Besides, my mumma raised me better than to let a lady walk home alone."

"Well, I'd better let you then. I don't want your mum's lessons going to waste."

As we walk, Embry links my arm through his.

"I had a really good time tonight. I haven't played spotlight in years. You guys are just over grown kids on the inside aren't you," I laugh at the indignant look on his face. Then he breaks into a huge grin.

"Well maybe a little childish. But it's good to see everyone be able to relax a little. And sometimes there's nothing like revisiting childhood."

Almost at the driveway to Emily and Sam's, we pass a white weatherboard house, which Embry points out, "told you we pass right by my place."

His house is really cute. I remember seeing it on one of my first days here. It's the sort of place I can see myself growing old in.

"You wanna take a look around before I take you home?" Embry asks.

I quickly agree, my desire to see the inside of the house almost over whelming, though I'm not sure why.

The front door opens into a decent sized lounge, complete with fireplace. There's also a huge flat screen TV on one wall and a big leather corner suite taking up two walls. Through another door is the kitchen. It has ample bench space and all the latest appliances.

It's immediately apparent that there are no females living here as Embry opens the fridge. It's at least half stocked with beer. He passes me one and grabs one for himself.

Off the kitchen is a hallway with five doors along its length. The first door is open and reveals an office of sorts, though it doesn't look like it gets a lot of use. The next door is the bathroom. There is a huge wet floor shower in one corner which makes me rather jealous. The last two doors lead to bedrooms, both lived in and very masculine. The first contains a super king bed and little else. Before I can ask Embry why, he shows me the closet, which turns out to be a walk-in wardrobe.

"This is my mate Kelly's room. He wasn't there tonight because he's down in Seattle visiting his mum. She was getting married today," he tells me. The room has a totally manly smell, like pine mixed with ocean. It smells really good.

"To be honest, he's not here very often anyway. He's in the marine corps."

He leads me into his room, which is pretty much a carbon copy of the first apart from the smell. It's more citrus and ocean. Embry sits on the bed and drains his beer.

"Wow, Embry. Your house is awesome. Is it wrong to be kinda jealous of your bathroom, though?"

He laughs at me, "I won't hold that against you. I'm glad you like it."

I finish my beer and take it back out to the kitchen. I put the empty bottle in the bin and turn to Embry, who had followed me down the hall.

He moves toward me, bringing a hand up to cup my cheek. His thumb grazes my mouth, sending shivery jolts through me. I tilt my head, our eyes meeting. The heat from his eyes sends my heart rate skyward, desire pooling low in my belly. He lowers his face, his lips mere inches from mine. A low growl issues from him as his mouth crashes to mine. My reaction is instantaneous and primal. My arms go round his neck, fingers tangling in his hair. He pulls me up against his rock hard body and I clasp my legs round his hips. I feel my panties getting damp from my arousal, my body preparing itself for him. Sucking my bottom lip between his, he gently bites, eliciting a moan from me. He carries me back to his room, lowering me to the bed. He pulls of his shirt before throwing it into the corner of the room. Then he unzips my jacket and I help him get it off, following it quickly with my shirt. He gently caresses my flushed skin before removes my bra. Bringing his attention to my breasts, he kneels on the floor, giving his mouth better access to my already taunt nipples.

Settling between my thighs, his engorged member pulses invitingly at my entrance. Not able to contain my want any longer, I use my heels on his arse and bring him to me. My breath gushes out in a rush as I take in all of him, my body stretching to accommodate his immense size. We move together, the speed picking up as my arousal grows.

"Mmm, Embry. Oh, harder," I beg.

He flips me over before increasing his force. One hand rests on my waist, holding me to him while his other hand reaches between my legs, stroking the nub of my desire.

He lets out a guttural growl as his body starts to clench. His fingers stroke faster, bringing me to the brink and then pushing me over just as I feel his release.

I let out a contented sigh as he withdraws and collapses onto the mattress. I lay down and he pulls me against himself, wrapping his arms round my waist. I lay my head on his chest as my heart rate returns to normal. I stop him as he moves to pull a sheet over us. The heat coming off his body is keeping me deliciously warm. I hear his breathing change as he dozes off, my own consciousness waning soon after.


	4. Mourning and mating

_Chapter 4 Mourning and mating._

It's been a month since I left La Push. When I left, I still hadn't learnt anything else about my dream. But I had had to get home for a work deadline. I had gotten so much work done while I was in La Push that my agent jokingly told me I should move there. The only thing was I really wanted to. Considering I'd only been there just over a fortnight, I found myself mourning it. Almost as if I had somehow lost it. Before I left, Emily had made me promise to keep in touch with her. Which I had happily agreed to do. We'd already talked on the phone a few times and sent the odd text and email.

I found myself wanting to talk to her now, but it was very late. Or early I guess. The dream had woken me yet again and I was finding it exceedingly difficult to go back to sleep each time.

Making my way down to the kitchen, I'm surprised to see Charlie sitting at the breakfast bar. After giving me an appraising look, Charlie pours me a whisky and passes it over.

"Nightmare again?"

"Yeah. I'm getting so sick of the damn thing. I need a good night's sleep or I'm never gonna be able to focus long enough to get any work done ever again."

I sit on the bench and swing my legs back and forth. Charlie pats my leg comfortingly, "I know a way to work off some energy enough to get back to sleep."

And I take Charlie up on the unspoken offer.

It's not the first time we've slept together and certainly won't be the last. Our relationship had been developing for a few months. The incident with Embry had been discussed and forgiven seeing as how we're not technically an item. And though it had been amazing, I also knew he and I could never be anything more.

And my desire to return to La Push had nothing to do with Embry as far as romance was concerned. I couldn't really define the longing I had for the place, the people. But it seemed to intensify the longer I was away from it.

But regardless of my feelings, I was unable to return any time soon. Stupid work commitments.

Date: 25-03-2018

From:

To:

Subject: News.

Hello Peyton,

How is life in Portland treating you? What have you been doing? It has been quite busy here as I have been helping Kim with the wedding arrangements. There is not much longer to go till the big day. Barely eight weeks. And to add to all that, Kim found out she's almost 12 weeks pregnant! And Rachel's just in to her 7th month. She's due on the 28th of May. I wonder who will be next.

Rachels brother, Jacob, and his wife, Renesmee, are moving back to the area before she gives birth too. He's a doctor and will be working at the hospital in Seattle.

So, yeah. There's a little bit going on at the moment.

But what I really want to know is when are you coming back to see us? The kids miss you heaps and so do I. Everyone's been asking when you're coming back to visit.

So get your butt back here!

Emily.

Date: 01-04-2018

From:

To:

Subject: I miss y'all too!

Hey Em,

Wow! Weddings and babies and moving, oh my!

Sounds like everything is happening at once up there. Tell Kim and Jared congratulations for me. I hope they're both happy. And I bet Rachel is getting excited. Make sure you send me photos of everything.

Sorry it took me a while to get back to you but its still been pretty hectic round here. But it shouldn't be much longer till everything gets back to normal (fingers crossed).

Missing you heaps,

Pey.

P.s give the twins a big hug for me

3:29 am

Okay. Well, that was different. My body relaxes as the dream fades. But the grey eyes linger in my memory.

_The forest around La Push. The battle, the screeching of the beautiful people, the growling of the wolves. Screaming. And then one of the females lunges at one of the wolves. A big black wolf with red tinged fur. Her hands go round the wolf and she squeezes tightly. The wolf grunts in pain. Then the woman lowers her head as if to kiss the wolf. But the sound. Defiantly does not sound like the wolf is enjoying it. She lets go and the wolf staggers before falling to the ground. Blood is dripping from his throat. Whimpering, anguished howls coming from him. His head turns and I see his eyes. Grey eyes, full of pain. He's dying and there isn't anything I can do to help. _

The wolf, my wolf, is dying. Tears fill my eyes as I recall the dream.

Date: 19-04-2018

From:

To:

Subject: I need cheesecake!

Argh! This past week has been so frustrating. I've had a total mind block all week and haven't got anything done. I just so needed some of your amazing cheesecake and a large glass of wine by the end of it. I very nearly jumped in the car to come cry on your shoulder.

Is it weird that I consider you one of my closest friends when we only met a few months ago and have only shared calls, texts and emails since then? I don't really understand it, but I feel as if I've known you forever.

Oh well. I'm pretty sure I'm crazy anyway. You wouldn't believe the dream I've been having.

Anyway, I hope everything there is good.

Love, Peyton.

Date: 20-04-2018

From:

To:

Subject: :'(

Pey,

Sorry you had a bad week. And no, I don't think it's weird. I feel the same way. I guess we're just meant to be in each other's lives.

Next time, just come over. I'll whip up a cheesecake and get out my most absorbent shirt .

Love, Em.

Date: 07-05-2018

From:

To:

Subject: COME BACK!

Peyton,

As you can see by the subject line, I miss you. When are you coming to visit? I had gotten so used to our morning coffee. It's just not the same without you. So don't be a stranger. And when you get here I'll have the coffee/ wine and cheesecake waiting.

Love, Em.

Date: 15-05-2018

From:

To:

Subject: And so it shall be.

Em,

It was so good to get your call the other day. It was just what I needed. And yay. My workload has finally let up. So guess what? I'm taking some time off. I'm gonna fly to Fort Worth to visit my parents for a week and then I'll be heading home. But only to get my car so I can drive right over to get some cheesecake! So if there's no-one else in it, can you please book my cabin for me? From about the 28th?

I can't wait to see you. And Levi and Ember

Love, Pey.

Date: 21-05-2018

From:

To:

Subject: Photos

Well, Kim and Jared got married yesterday. It was a beautiful ceremony. Kim looked absolutely stunning and the day couldn't have been more perfect. And then at the reception, Rachel went into labour.

Carena Jayne and Maria Alena Grayson were born last night at 9: 57 and 10:09 pm respectively.

So I've attached pictures of the wedding and the newest additions. They are both very pretty little girls as you can see.

Can't wait to see you.

Em.

Date: 22-05-2018

From:

To:

Subject: Grey-eyed god

Tell Rachel I'm going to steal her babies when I get there. They both look so adorable. And tell Kim she looked absolutely stunning. Jared is one lucky man.

But I have one question. Who is the absolute hottie with the grey eyes in the photo with Ember and Levi at the wedding? As weird as this may sound, I think he was in a dream I had a while ago. Kind of anyway. I'll tell you about it when I get there. See you in a few days.

P.


End file.
